Former New Zealand pacer and now commentator Simon Doull slammed Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) star batter Nicholas Pooran for his abysmal showing with the bat in the ongoing IPL 2026 edition. Having been retained by the franchise for a whopping 21 crores, the former West Indies batter Nicholas Pooran has been a massive letdown this season.
Nicholas Pooran is averaging a dismal 8.50 at a strike rate of under 80 through the first six games. As a result, LSG are currently languishing in 9th place in the standings with only two wins in six games. Simon Doull also pointed out the collective failures of LSG’s top four batters, Pooran, Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, and Rishabh Pant, as the key reason behind their struggles.
Simon Doull Slams Nicholas Pooran for his poor show
Speaking on Cricbuzz, Simon Doull said, “They are trying to free Badoni up by making him open. Their biggest issue is three overseas. You’ve got three overseas batters in your top five. One of them, in Markram, has put in a couple of performances. Marsh hasn’t done a lot, and Nicholas Pooran has done absolutely nothing.”Â
Simon Doull further added: “Pant has won them one game and nothing outside of that. You’ve spent 50 crores on two players in Pant and Pooran, who have won you one game. Almost half your purse for one game. They are just unsure about their batting order. They’ve made the changes early in an attempt to find something.”Â
The trio of Marsh, Pant, and Markram are averaging under 30 each, with one half-century between them in six matches.
Simon Doull urges Riyan Parag to return to form as soon as possible
LSG’s next opponents are the Rajasthan Royals (RR), and they have a problem with their captain as well. Riyan Parag has been in woeful form, and Simon Doull called him out for his dismal showing with the bat this season. The right-hander has scored only 61 runs at an average of 12.20 and a strike rate of 122 in six innings in this year’s IPL.
Speaking in the same discussion, Simon Doull said: “The skipper is the one who needs an innings. He needs an innings of substance just for his own peace of mind. He has captained pretty well, though. But it might just be a 30 or 40 that gets him going. He needs runs not just for the team but for himself. He needs something of substance.”
Despite Riyan Parag’s woeful form, RR have won four out of their six matches to remain in the top four of the IPL standings as we speak. The stage is set for a crucial IPL game later tonight as LSG hosts RR in Lucknow. LSG now has two back-to-back home games, with them playing RR today before hosting KKR on Sunday night. LSG needs these points more than RR. LSG have a bad Net Run Rate and is in 9th place in the standings. RR started well and won their first 4 games, but lost the last two. LSG have lost their last three games.
Someone’s losing streak will come to an end tonight at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. RR needs to sort out their middle order woes, as after Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, there seems to be little or no contribution. Dhruv Jurel has looked good in patches, but the rest below him have not contributed at all. Riyan Parag needs to step up as well. Shimron Hetmyer has blown cold, while Donovan Ferreira has had one good game. The bowling looks sorted for them.
LSG needs their big guns to fire to beat RR. RR looks more balanced on paper and on form. We shall see who comes out on top in this clash.
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